Autumn leaves are falling, and it's time for '5 owners to take some precautions.

This has been mentioned before, but newer owners may not be aware of it. (Not sure if it applies to Mk 2's - anyone?) If you take a good torch, open the doors wide and shine the torch into the dark recess forward of the doors (inside the wing) it is likely that you will find a good compost heap developing there.

The heap of leaves comes not from debris thrown up by the wheels as often believed, but (mainly) from the scuttle area. There is a large well just in front of the screen, where the windscreen wiper mechanism is. Leaves collect in here, as you may have noticed, especially if you park near trees.

What you may not have noticed is that at either side of the scuttle is a hole, down into the inner wing. This is designed to allow water to run down through the inner wing area. Unfortunately, it's a big hole, and it also allows leaves, tools and anything else you might have inadvertently allowed to get into the scuttle area to fall down as well. These cannot get out, and just build up behind the lower part of the wing. The wet soggy compost heap will not do the wing or body structure any good, and rust will eventually start here if you don't do something.

It is easy to see the hole on the drivers side, but there is one on the passenger side as well, hidden under the black plastic shield. I made up some small grilles from hard plastic garden windbreak netting for these holes, to prevent large objects going down. To clear out the existing debris, you need to release the wing - some small bolts under the sill area. You'll need to release the mud flap if fitted. Pull the wing out gently, a short way. Then use something long and flexible to fish out everything that's up there. Tell the list if you find something interesting or valuable - or any famous celebrities (in-joke!)! If you have some waxoyl handy, it's probably a good idea to spray the area and what you can of the inside of the wing.

So there's a little job for the weekend! (10/00)

Just be careful to not overtighten the bolts when putting the base of the wing back on....They snap! Amazingly, after having the wing off SAZ9826, it wasn't the wing that was starting to rust, but rather the lower door hinge area that was just starting to go. No easy way to treat rust here, as its a bit inaccessible with the wing in place.

Another tip; removed my factory sill covers this weekend to treat some corrosion underneath. The sills are stuck down on their outer edge, so its quite easy to bend them if you're not careful. An old bread knife worked wonders to gently lever the glued sections. The sill wasn't too bad underneath (most of the sill doesn't actually rest on the bodywork, having felt pads at either end). I understand horror stories might lurk behind aftermarket steel/aluminium covers (as sold by Moss, MM Marketing etc), where much more of the sill is in contact. The felt pads on mine had worn a little, allowing the sill cover to scratch the sill, leading to a fair amount of surface corrosion (even after dremeling away the rust to clean metal, there was a fair amount of pitting). I applied some clear silicone to the ends of the covers before reinstalling. I didn't go mad with the sealant, and seal the entire sill cover, as I don't want to create a condensation trap. (10/00)